Interesting Beer Facts

any there is a beer ice cream in popsicle form. Itsand one of its most illustrious drinkers and
alcohol content is lower than that of classic beer.aficionados. It’s said that even in his
The Code of Hammurabi of ancient Babylonia (c. 1750retirement in Yuste, he kept a Flemish brewer in his
B.C.) declared that a tradesman could be put to deathreduced entourage.
for diluting beer.Assyrian tablets from 2000 BC stated that Noah was
In Medieval Europe, brewing and baking wentcarrying beer aboard the ark.
together. Thus women were the first EuropeanThe United States two-dollar bill features three
brewers and were often called ale wives.brewers: George Washington, Thomas Jefferson and
1810: Munich establishes Oktoberfest as an officialSamuel Adams. In fact, George Washington installed
celebration.a brewhouse on his grounds at Mount Vernon.
King Frederick the Great once banned coffee toMany years ago in England, pub frequenters had a
bolster sagging beer sales.whistle baked into the rim of their ceramic cups.
In Babylon over 4000 years ago, it was customaryWhen they needed a refill, they used the whistle to
for the bride's father to supply his new son-in-lawget some service. "Wet your whistle" is the phrase
with all the mead he could drink. As mead is a honeyinspired by this practice.
beer and their calendar was lunar based, this periodBeer wasn't sold in bottles until 1850. Beer lovers
was called the 'honey month' — or what wewould visit their local tavern with a special bucket,
know today as the 'honeymoon'. In fact, Babylonianshave it filled and then begin the merry journey home.
believed if the groom drank mead for an entireAle was brewed for centuries without hops. Before
month, it enhanced the chances of his wife bearing athe 1400s, ale was flavoured with herbs such as
male heir.rosemary and thyme. Yet the antiseptic quality of
In Bavaria, beer is legally defined as a staple food.hops helped to preserve ale from spoiling and later
After consuming buckets of aul (or ale), the Vikingsbecame a vital part of its flavour.
would head fearlessly into battle, often withoutIn the Czech Republic, beer is cheaper than Coke. A
armour or even shirts. In fact, "berserk" means "barehalf litre at the local pub costs just 30 cents (10.50
shirt" in Norse, and eventually took on the meaningCZK) while a half litre of Coke costs 85 cents (30
of their wild battles.CZK). Beer is a little more expensive than club soda
The first US lager was brewed in 1840 by John(which costs 29 cents, or 10 CZK, for a half litre).
Wagner, who had a small brewery in the back of hisA labeorphilist is a collector of beer bottles.
house on St. John Street in Philadelphia. WagnerCenosillicaphobia is the fear of an empty glass
brought the first lager yeast to the United StatesA tegestologist is a collector of beer mats.
from a brewery in Bavaria.A flood of beer swept through the streets of St.
Historians report that during the Middle Ages, whenGiles, England, on 17 October 1814. Caused by a
monks were brewing their beer in their monasteries,rupture in a brewery tank containing 3500 barrels of
each monk was allowed to drink 5 quarts of beer abeer, the tidal wave killed nine people and demolished
day.two houses.
Legend has it that Gambrinus, god of beer,Universities in Europe and America from the 1300s
challenged the devil to produce a “wine withoutthrough the 1700s had in-house breweries to provide
grapes.” The historical origin of the concoction webeer to the students. Harvard had its own brew
know today can be found in 12th-century Belgium,house in 1674 and five beer halls, each burned down
although the Egyptians had already createdby rioting divinity students.
fermented-grain beverages well before then.The first six-pack of beer was produced by the
The pursuit of beer changed the course of humanityPabst Brewery in the 1940s. The brewery conducted
forever in 5000 BC. Neolithic people abandoned theirnumerous studies, which found six cans were the
wandering lives for farming, to grow grain forideal weight for the average housewife to carry
brewing beer.home from the store.
In 1116 BC, Chinese imperial edict stated that heavenAncient Egyptians brewed beer in just three days,
required people to drink beer.due to the hot climate. Served as a still fermenting
The Egyptian pyramids were built on beer.cereal mash, they would drink it through straws from
Stonecutters, slaves and public officials were paid in aa communal bowl.
type of beer called 'kash' — which is whereIn eleventh-century England, a bride would distribute
the word 'cash' originated.ale to her wedding guests in exchange for donations
In English pubs, unruly customers were told to mindto the newlyweds. This brew, known as Bride Ale, is
their own pints and quarts and settle down —the origin of the word 'bridal'.
and so began the phrase "mind your P's and Q's".One method of checking a beer’s quality is
(Another explanation is customers were beingthe way in which the foam adheres to the side of
warned about the potency of the beer. Atthe glass after each sip. Beer connoisseurs call this
'freehouses' where people could make and sell their“Brussels lace.”
own beer, there was less control on the alcoholBy 3000 BC, the Egyptians were brewing at least six
content.)different types of beer.
The familiar Scandinavian toast sköl derives from1888: Citizens of Munich took to the streets and
scole, the drinking bowl shaped like the upper half ofrioted after a beer price increase was announced.
a human skull. Originally, these bowls were fashionedIn 1740, Admiral Vernon of the British fleet decided
from the actual skulls of enemy killed in battle.to water down the navy's rum. The unhappy sailors
Before thermometers were invented, brewers wouldnicknamed the Admiral 'Old Grog', after his wool
dip a thumb into the mix to find the rightgrogram coats. The term 'grog' soon began to mean
temperature for adding yeast. Too cold and thethe watered down drink itself.
yeast wouldn't grow; too hot and the yeast wouldCzechs drink the most beer in the world per capita
die. This ancient practice is where we get the phrase— an average of 160 litres a year per person.
'rule of thumb'.In olde England, town inns paid a government tax
Saint Arnold, a bishop born in 580, is considered theknown as a 'scot' for serving beer. Beer lovers who
patron saint of beer. He encouraged people to drinkleft town to drink at rural pubs were said to be
beer instead of water during the Plague. Indeed, thedrinking 'scot free'.
Plague suddenly disappeared once his word spreadRoot Beer was origionally called Root Tea, however
(though some suggest because beer was boiled inthe name was changed to Root Beer to get more
the brewing process, it would have been safer thanpeople to take interest in it.
water, which had previously spread the infection.)Beer recipes have been found on Babylonian clay
When Saint Arnold died in 640, the citizens of histablets from over 6000 years ago.
hometown carried his body from Remiremont toGuinness sells an average of 7 million glasses a day.
Metz for reburial in their church. On this journey,The British Army supplied its men with a cash
another miracle occurred — when the wearyallowance for beer, considered a vital nutritional staple
porters stopped to share their only mug of beer,on long overseas missions. With this allowance of one
they discovered the mug never ran dry.penny, soldiers enjoyed six pints of ale every day.
The most expensive beer in the world? It’s1587: The first beer is brewed in the New World at
called “Tutankhamen” and is prepared accordingSir Walter Raleigh's colony in Virginia, but the colonists
to the recipe recovered by a group of University ofsend requests to England for better beer
Cambridge archaeologists in Queen Nefertiti’sA beer a day... Beer was used to treat over 100
Temple of the Sun in Egypt. It costs US $52 a bottle,illnesses in Egypt, 1600 BC.
and is produced in limited and numbered edition.In the 13th century, King Wenceslas convinced the
The pilgrims landed at Plymouth Rock because theyPope to revoke an order banning the brewing of
ran out of beer. Although they planned to continuebeer in Czech territories (no wonder he was known
down the east coast, the Mayflower's log explainsas 'Good King Wenceslas).
the passengers "were hasted ashore and made toIn Egypt, two containers of beer were the minimum
drink water that the seamen might have the morewage for a day's labour.
beer". On their arrival, the pilgrims immediately built aAmerican beer is predominately made from rice. That
common house, which included a brewery.is why it tastes so light compared to foriegn beers.
In ancient times, monks who fasted or abstainedThis is purely an American invention to increase
from solid food subsisted on beer.profits as they hoped a lighter beer would also draw
The music for "The Star Spangled Banner" waswomen to purchase.
derived from a British drinking song called "Anacreon".Beer was often served for breakfast in medieval
Carlos V: This emperor was the first beer importer,England.